Knicks coach Derek Fisher seems to be feeling heat as not-so-young team flounders

Carmelo Anthony clearly isn’t himself these days and you didn’t need the uncontested air ball with four minutes left to tell you that.

Carmelo Anthony clearly isn't himself these days and you didn't need the uncontested air ball with four minutes left in another failed comeback bid to tell you that.

Anthony's surgically repaired left knee has already cost him seven games this season while robbing him of a quick first step and any explosiveness at the rim. The Knicks have copped to giving Anthony one MRI but according to a team source, Anthony has had two MRIs in the past three weeks so the concern over his long-term health is very real.

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"Today, it wasn't that sore," Anthony said. "I think the couple of days off helped."

Anthony is entering the Patrick Ewing phase of his career; he'll have to learn to live with knee pain and adjust his game accordingly. This is the deal when you're 31 years old and have logged over 32,000 minutes.

The Knicks got off to yet another slow start in their 101-96 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Super Bowl Sunday. It was a familiar formula. Fall behind early, rally in the second half, fall short. Against the Nuggets, the deficit was 19 in the first half and afterward Fisher called it a "lack of readiness."

"I'll take some responsibility for that," Fisher added.

Some?

And that wasn't even the first head-scratching comment Fisher made on Sunday. When asked before the game to respond to free agent-to-be point guard Rajon Rondo saying that the triangle isn't for him, Fisher said, "He wasn't very successful playing against it."

Fisher conveniently forgot that as a member of the Boston Celtics, Rondo won a title against Phil Jackson and the triangle Lakers.

Fisher has a tendency to out-smart himself during interview sessions and is slowly becoming more combative. That's usually the first sign that a coach is feeling some heat.

But Fisher's performance at the podium is just a small issue. At some point, his job performance will be dissected and that time is quickly approaching.

With Garden chairman James Dolan watching from his customary baseline seat and Jackson perched approximately 10 rows from center court, the Knicks fell to 23-31. That's a season-high eight games under .500. They've lost five straight and nine of their last 10.

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Fisher's career coaching record is an unsightly 40-96 since becoming Jackson's second choice after Steve Kerr. Coincidentally, the Nuggets head coach, Michael Malone, broke in as a Knicks assistant. Same with Charlotte's Steve Clifford. Free agent coach Tom Thibodeau was also a Knicks assistant. All three were let go by Dolan so remember that the next time someone tells you that the Knicks president has full autonomy.

Carmelo Anthony is not exactly in the early days of his NBA career. (Noah K. Murray/USA Today Sports)

Dolan wasn't that crazy about Kerr, who is now working on a second straight title with Golden State. Kerr really is the luckiest man on the face of the earth. Fisher is less fortunate.

He was handed an average roster in his rookie season and when the Knicks began tanking Fisher finished with 17 wins and the worst record in franchise history. It was accepted that Fisher didn't have much to work with. This year is different.

No, he didn't inherit the 1985-86 Boston Celtics but Anthony has played in 47 of 54 games. Kristaps Porzingis is better than the Knicks had anticipated, at least this quickly. Arron Afflalo and Robin Lopez are veterans who were signed as free agents.

The Knicks are not a championship contender but being one of eight teams to reach the playoffs in a 15-team conference is not asking much. For the money Dolan hands out in salaries, including those of his president and head coach, thinking about a playoff berth is not exactly reaching for the stars.

Knicks rookie Kristaps Porzingis is one of the few young, developing players on the team. (Seth Wenig/AP)

Fisher, though, has different ideas. He recently said in a radio interview that making the playoffs shouldn't be considered a disappointment. What? That's not only a PR nightmare but according to a source, Dolan was not thrilled with that line of thinking.

Detroit's Stan Van Gundy had it right when he ridiculed the notion that the Knicks are a young, developing team. Ask Carmelo how young his knee feels. Lopez, Afflalo and Calderon are not kids anymore.

Of the seven teams that failed to reach the playoffs last season, only Philadelphia has a worse record than the Knicks. Miami, Indiana, Detroit, Charlotte and Orlando are all better yet none of those teams beats the dead horse about being young and developing.

David Blatt had the best record in the Eastern Conference when he was fired and Kevin McHale was dismissed 11 games after leading Houston to the Western Conference finals. Fisher's job, however, appears to be safe because he's Jackson's guy.

It's always good to have the support of the front office. That's what every coach wants. And Jackson doesn't appear to be the type to overact. In that sense, Fisher is lucky.